


How the Two Crows Befriended Each Other (The Royal Scramble spin-off story)

by D_Maradine



Series: The Royal Scramble [2]
Category: Persona 2, Persona 5, Persona 5 Royal, Persona Series
Genre: Akechi talking to animals like they are humans, Angst, Fluff, Humor, M/M, Persona 5 Royal post-canon, Spin-Off, a bit of denial, a pinch of character study, no Persona 5 Scramble spoilers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-27
Updated: 2020-09-27
Packaged: 2021-03-07 22:53:59
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,425
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26685460
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/D_Maradine/pseuds/D_Maradine
Summary: “You made friends,” he said and for a moment Akechi was convinced he was speaking to the bird. That's how absolutely fucking stunned he was.“It’s not a— It’s not a friend,” he protested.(((It's a spin-off but can be read separately, NO P5S spoilers here, only TRS spoilers to what was Akechi up to post-Royal and with who! )))
Relationships: Akechi Goro/Amamiya Ren, Akechi Goro/Kurusu Akira, Akechi Goro/Persona 5 Protagonist, Kurosu Jun/Suou Tatsuya
Series: The Royal Scramble [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1941796
Comments: 14
Kudos: 116





	How the Two Crows Befriended Each Other (The Royal Scramble spin-off story)

**Author's Note:**

> I dedicate this spin-off chapter to Maha, without who the whole crow idea might have never seen the light TwT  
> To our one shared braincell!!!
> 
> Absolutely check out her amazing art of Akechi with the crow under this link:  
> https://twitter.com/Poichanchan/status/1303076141859733505?s=20  
> (there is one more in the comments of the tweet ;) )
> 
> PS. this was going to be a 2-3k fic (sighs)

May was nearing its end and so was Goro Akechi’s patience regarding this particular shopping list, given to him by Jun-san earlier that day. He managed to get almost all of the items on it without the slightest problem, save for the last one. 

In normal circumstances, it wouldn’t pose an issue. The thing was, unlike all other products on the fucking list, the fabric softener had the brand and scent specified. Underlined three times. 

Even if Akechi wasn’t a detective in the first place, and he  _ was _ , he could still get the message – it was a buy or die.

He spent most of the afternoon going around the shops in Shibuya, from the discount ones in the Underground Mall, through the shabbier ones by the end of the Central Street. He visited the markets and drugstores, even the tourist-centered buy-all shop, but the specific fabric softener was nowhere in sight. Not even the glimpse of its shitty ugly cap.

Well, fuck. The night or two in the park won’t kill him. He will figure something out. He has managed by himself for so long, after all.

Resigned, he sat down by the Buchiko, watching as the slowly setting sun changed the colors of everything around. The people passed by, most of them in a hurry, the constantly moving sea of dark hair, white shirts, sometimes interrupted by silhouettes in school uniforms. Face masks, smartphones. The glint of glasses under the curl of dark hair.

He straightened up, reflexively, heart skipping a beat. He followed the messy head with his eyes for a second, searching for the familiar Shujin uniform and the bag with the cat's head sticking out of it… before he noticed other things. Too short. Different posture. Unfamiliar gait. 

It wasn’t him.  _ Of course _ it wasn’t him. It couldn’t have been. 

Akechi looked down at his feet, biting the bottom lip in irritation. It was better like this. The next time he meets Ren Amamiya, it will all go as he planned it, with him on the higher ground, prepared. With him extending a helping hand this time, repaying his debts. 

Surely, the opportunity will come. He felt it in his gut. Detective’s intuition, he would joke before. 

Suddenly feeling a lot better, he reached for his phone, deciding to search for the goddamn fabric softener on the internet. Maybe order it online, then return victorious to the Suou-Kurosu household a few days later.

Before his hand even touched the device, the phone chirped, or more like  _ coughed _ , signaling the new message got delivered. 

He paused. 

That was  _ not _ his ringtone, and the phone was muted in the first place anyway. 

The sound repeated, and he looked down at his feet again.

The pretty big, black bird stood there, tilting its head at something on Akechi’s shoes.

“ _Caw_ ,” it coughed again and Akechi narrowed his eyes.

What a shitty joke of fate was this again. A crow? Really? 

He stomped his foot on the ground, trying to shoo the bird away. It jumped, but instead of jumping  _ back _ , it lunged  _ towards _ Akechi’s shoe like a predator. The t-rex’s fucking descendant.

“What the fuck?” he muttered under his breath, quickly swinging his foot away. The bird looked at him with irritation. “What the fuck?” Akechi repeated. 

“ _Caw_ ,” the crow answered. 

And jumped at his shoe again, forcing him to make yet another dodge. 

Goro Akechi, you are the fucking detective. Think, what is it about your shoes that would make a bird like this attack them? 

He  _ did _ the research on crows before. Back when he was still working normally, not as merely an assistant. When Ann Takamaki’s model friend was being stalked by what turned out to be a bird like this, wanting to repay the debt of kindness to her.

Crows were omnivores, they ate almost everything. And Akechi’s shoes were leather, although a bit worn out already. But, apparently, it didn’t pose a problem to the bird. 

A thought passed his mind, if in the crow’s eyes, he’s wearing dead animals on his feet.

He clicked his tongue in irritation and waved his hand at the feathery lump of nuisance. 

“You are annoying, leave me alone,” he told the bird.

“ _Caw, caw_ ,” the bird argued.

“I don’t  _ care _ if you are hungry. Go bother someone else.”

“ _Caw, caw!_ ”

Goro Akechi knew very well, from that one past case, that showing crow a kindness could make the bird want to repay it.

And Goro Akechi wasn’t the one to voluntarily offer it in the very first place, too. 

The world just didn’t work that way. 

Giving in to those pleading, shiny beads of eyes was going to make things harder for the bird, even if it didn’t realize it in its small ignorant brain. 

Once experiencing a human’s altruism, it was going to search for it in others, getting closer to people against its primarily wild nature, becoming less guarded to the possible dangers. 

Then, when it least expected, someone would betray its naïve trust, catch it, maybe kill it for fun. 

The crow didn’t know human kindness, but so it didn’t know human evil.

“Go away,” he said, noticing with disgust how his own voice sounded softer now. But the bird didn’t budge and kept watching him intensely, silently this time. 

This gaze reminded him of someone.

Akechi scoffed, shook his head. “I can’t fucking believe myself,” he informed the crow, then reached to the shopping bag at his side. Ripped open the plastic package with minced meat, tore off half of the cabbage’s leaf. Placed the meal on the ground for the bird to eat. He cringed, feeling like a character of some cliché anime. “Thank Jun-san for this, you brainless chicken.”

The crow blinked and plucked the portion of meat from the cabbage leaf.

Akechi watched the bird slowly finish it off, grab the leaf, then fly away. 

He hoped to never see it again, as he gathered his things up and stood up, ready to call the shopping a day. 

An older lady was watching him from a few steps away.

“You shouldn’t feed the pigeons, young man” she warned him when their eyes met.

He flashed the best celebrity smile he could manage back at her. “Don’t worry, grandma, I won’t.” 

Maybe he was out of practice. It didn't seem like she believed him.

* * *

In the instances when the three of them were all back home by the evening, Jun insisted on having dinner together.

It was no different today and as soon as Akechi walked into the kitchen to drop the shopping bags, Jun looked up at him from over the cooking pot.

“Welcome back, Goro-kun,” he greets him and Akechi tries his best not to wince. He’s been living here for a good month now, but still couldn’t quite get used to having someone welcoming him with those words… as well as referring to him by his first name. He vaguely recalled Ren calling him that, sometimes. Usually when he wanted something. Like that one time he promised to treat him to coffee and curry in exchange for information on the case and in on the interrogation.

He remembered how the guy appeared to it in a policewoman dress-up and snorted despite himself. He had to admit, though, that he was pulling the look off better than many actual policewomen, considering the plain design of the uniform. 

The jacket was a bit tight on Ren’s broad shoulders, but it worked for his advantage, getting rid of its otherwise slight bagginess. It was instead a bit more loose where his waist and hips were smaller than a woman’s. It kind of emphasized, however, just how fine his long legs looked in a dark pencil skirt, not to mention—

“Goro-kun?” Jun called out with a small smile and Akechi realized he was probably talking to him all this time.

He blinked a few times to chase away the memory. “My apologies, Jun-san, my mind wandered.” He placed the bags on the counter and started unpacking the groceries.

The man chuckled softly, an elegant and calming sound falling pleasant on the ears. “It’s no big deal, Goro-kun. I was just saying that Tatsun will be home early today. We should eat together.” 

It wasn’t really a question but Akechi nodded in confirmation regardless. 

At first those shared meals made him excessively uncomfortable. The close presence of other people, the  _ warm _ atmosphere between them. The taste of home-cooked meals, sometimes music flowing gently from the player in the living room. All of it was making him feel like he’s the only element of the picture that doesn’t match, stands out like a sore thumb instead. 

It was just sitting by the table but he couldn’t really find a good position to sit in. 

It was just the casual talk but he kept finding himself at loss of what to say.

Soon it turned out none of his hosts expected him to act in any certain way. They didn’t expect him to talk either. The silence he thought heavy at first slowly turned into comfortable. 

“Goro-kun,” Jun’s voice was colored with surprise when he called out to him, and when Akechi turned around he could see the older man holding the ground meat he has bought earlier… and fed some to the stupid bird.

“Oh.”

“Did… something happen to it?”

“My apologies,” he said, trying not to wince. It was only a second time but he felt like he was apologizing too much today. “There was a small accident,” he lied, because it was easier this way. 

Jun watched him for a moment with an unreadable expression, and Akechi had a feeling he saw through his excuse. He wasn’t used to that either. But Jun wasn’t the one to pry into his business either.

“It’s fine, it can still be used.” He placed the package aside with a small smile. “You know, Goro-kun, I’ve been working in my line of work for a good few years already,” he started and turned back to take care of the dish simmering in the pot. It smelled like curry.

Akechi shifted uncomfortably. Was it the beginning of a lecture? He didn’t expect that and he didn’t really know what to do with it. No one gave lectures to Goro Akechi before. He wasn’t a kid. He was something different, an adult in teenager’s clothing.

“I meet many people on my job. Many different people, every single one of them with their own story, their own experiences. Most of them change due to experienced trauma.” Jun didn’t look at him, and for Akechi it felt like he was giving him space to breathe, this way. Listening to his words without the need to pull up a carefully stitched look on his face was… welcomed. “Some become bitter. Some become hollow. Others become kinder.” He shifted slightly, like if he wanted to look back at Akechi, but in the end didn’t. 

“I’m not traumatized,” Akechi answered with a bitter edge to it. “I’m perfectly  _ fine _ .”

This time Jun looked back at him, a kind smile resembling the full moon looking out from behind the clouds. He didn’t say anything more.

Tatsuya came back some time later. When he hugged Jun with one arm and placed a gentle kiss on top of his head, Akechi found himself looking away with unexplainable emotions swirling inside his chest. Was he embarrassed for witnessing it? Or was it something else? 

“How was shopping, Goro?” Tatsuya asked first thing after taking a seat opposite Akechi.

Akechi deadpanned. “My apologies.” This time he winced. “I couldn’t find the detergent anywhere.” He waited for the disappointment to show on the other’s face. When it scrunched up in incomprehension instead, he frowned. “It was… underlined specifically, so I—”

“Oh.” Tatsuya brought a hand up to his face and coughed lightly. “I meant to cross it out, not underline it.” The look on his face screamed  _ apologetic _ . “I hope it didn’t cause you any problems.”

It fucking did.

“No need to worry, Tatsuya-san.” Akechi smiled pleasantly. “I was free anyways.”

Jun came back from the kitchen, placing two steaming plates of curry before them. “Did I hear wrong?” he chuckled lightly and placed his hands on Tatsuya’s shoulders. “You tried to do it half asleep, didn’t you, Tatsun?” 

Tatsuya covered one of his palms with his and Akechi averted his gaze again. 

They looked so natural together. So open. So honest. 

They understood each other so well it seemed impossible. 

No, he thought suddenly. 

He too, had someone like this in his life before, even though only for a short moment. 

The realization made him scowl at his own hands, curled into fists on his lap. 

Was he getting sentimental now? 

How utterly fucking stupid. 

* * *

It was a week later he met the bird again. Or more like, the bird stalked him in the crowd and waited for opportunity to strike. 

He was out on investigation with Tatsuya and it led them to Shibuya Station Square. Their target was a young man who frequently played the guitar by the station entrance, counting on the chance for a person or two from the huge crowds to tip him for it.

He was supposed to be a close acquaintance with a college student that fell victim to the financial fraud taking place in the area. The first suspicion fell on the leftovers of the group previously led by Kaneshiro, but the evidence was still too weak to prove it’s a part of organized crime and start the full-on investigation. They hoped to change that today.

From what Akechi vaguely recalled, the young musician’s contribution to the music world was rather… insignificant. Though he guessed there were people out there who did things only for  _ fun _ .

“Want to give it a go?” Tatsuya asked him suddenly, a very old, silver lighter twirling between his fingers. 

Akechi snorted in amusement. “It’s not like I’m a greenhorn in the business, Tatsuya-san,” he answered, letting the corners of his lips fall down slightly in dissatisfaction. 

For some reason, Tatsuya was the kind of person who didn’t make him feel like acting all guarded around. There was an air to him that convinced Akechi that the man has forgiven for greater evil than the snarky attitude in the past. 

Not that Akechi was looking for forgiveness in the first place.

Tatsuya only gestured at him to lead the way in response, a man of few words as always. 

Akechi only managed to take one step before the wings flapped somewhere nearby and in the next moment a dark mess of disheveled feathers landed heavily and unskillfully on his shoulder, startling him enough to jump in place. 

He swat his hand at it reflexively, trying to get rid of it, but one of the sharp claws tangled in the shoulder strap of his sweater vest. 

Akechi could only see it getting torn as the fervent wing flapping and loud croaking drowned out every other sound in the world for a second. 

It tore his sweater vest.

It fucking destroyed his sweater vest.

It was the same one he had on when he went to the aquarium with Ren.

Akechi stood still, hands clenching and unclenching into fists. The crow acted like it suddenly gained the ability to read the mood because it also stopped moving.

Akechi wondered if yakitori must always be made from the chicken meat. He suddenly craved some.

“Goro?” Tatsuya asked curiously, without as much as a trace of disbelief. 

Akechi turned to face him, feeling the bird balancing its weight on his shoulder. 

“Don’t you wonder sometimes, Tatsuya-san, about what caused the many species to get endangered?” he asked conversationally.

“Not really.” Tatsuya walked up closer and lifted his hand up to the bird. 

“ _ Caw caw, _ ” it taunted.

“Caw caw,” Tatsuya answered, deadpanning, and Akechi would never be able to judge who was more at loss faced with that, himself or the crow. 

“Those are… some remarkable skills in making impressions, Tatsuya-san,” Akechi said, just to say  _ something  _ and show he wasn’t, in fact, utterly fucking flabbergasted. 

The crow let Tatsuya pet its head, probably still too shocked for its wildlife-inborn instincts to kick in.

“You made friends,” Tatsuya said and for a moment Akechi was convinced he was speaking to the bird. Thats how absolutely fucking stunned he was.

“It’s not a— It’s not a  _ friend _ ,” he protested. 

The crow  _ purred _ and attempted to jump from Akechi’s shoulder to Tastuya’s. One of its claws was still caught in the ripped fabric of his vest, so it didn’t make it, instead flapping wildly to regain balance, forcing Akechi to tilt his head strongly to the opposite side.

Tatsuya caught the bird with confident movement and untangled the unfortunate claw from the trap. It pecked at the sleeve of his shirt without maliciousness. 

“Are you good with animals, Tatsuya-san?” Akechi found himself asking before he could think.

The man hummed thoughtfully. “I wonder.” Was his only comment on the matter. 

Akechi held back a heavy sigh. Why was he even trying? He wasn’t  _ required _ to have friendly conversations with the policeman. He himself told him so. That if Akechi wishes for their relationship to be purely the one between co-workers, it’s fine. And he  _ was _ fine with it. So why did he constantly keep finding himself veering into more than necessary interactions? It was almost like with—

“—Ren.”

Akechi startled, heart jumping wildly in his chest. “Pardon?”

“Animals are similar to children.” Tatsuya didn’t start with  _ I said _ but it was there in the context. Akechi realized he has been making people repeat themselves a lot recently. 

He wasn’t sure what to think about it, so he just decided not to think about it  _ now _ .

“I’m not great with the latter,” Akechi said, but he wasn’t sure about that either. 

Sure, they seemed like disgusting, drooling little gnomes, but it was from afar. No one ever trusted him with taking care of a toddler before. Maybe no one ever trusted him  _ in general  _ before. 

He clicked his tongue angrily and shook his head, not caring about what Tatsuya may think of him. What was  _ wrong _ with him recently? Where did all these questions and self-discovery tendencies come from? 

Akechi recalled Jun’s coated suggestion from a few days prior. 

He  _ wasn’t _ traumatized. 

He stopped feeling like a victim a long time ago already. Was it when he got his first job under Shido done? Was it later, when he  _ died _ and came back to life or whatever shit really happened? 

It didn’t matter, really. 

Not only did he feel no remorse for his past actions, he also didn’t want to _ improve his character _ . The revenge, carried out on Shido with Ren’s hands, felt like a sweet victory more than anything. He was a  _ winner _ in the aftermath. 

There was nothing someone could pity about him.

Tatsuya’s palm landed on his shoulder, giving it a firm, grounding pat. The crow was gone from his hands and Akechi didn’t even realize when it happened. 

“You should try talking to Jun about it,” Tatsuya said, probably the longest sentence he worked up that day.

Akechi wondered if on top of being the literal sound impressions world champion the policeman made money on the side as a fucking mind reader.

* * *

The crow found him a few more times after that. It seemed like it lived somewhere in the area around Shibuya Station, because it usually bothered him there. 

After being taken by surprise a few times, Akechi made a habit of observing the nearby trees and listening in to the eventual sound of flapping wings. 

The bird’s sudden appearances were quite annoying in fact, more so they usually drew a lot of unwanted attention to him. Even though he was aware his reputation as Detective Prince was the old news already and everything, including the scandalous touch to it, was most likely forgotten, the perspective of being recognized wasn’t desirable. 

Sometimes he wondered to what extent how people perceived what really happened back then was a work of Yaldabaoth tampering with humanity’s unconscious and how much of it was his own work, how much carried a  _ real  _ meaning. But then, what exactly was the  _ real meaning _ ? How would one put measures on it?

If you lived in this world for a few years, it became obvious that society has something like… a collective attention span on certain matters. As long as they appeared in the media, they lived in people’s minds. When they disappeared from the screens, tabloids, newspapers, they gradually became the thing of the past, fading into a vague memory.

No, in fact, it was like this with everything. It was easy to forget a person, too. 

It was easy to move on, only once in a while, noncommittally, recalling the fact of their existence. 

Akechi wondered, sometimes, how quickly everyone he knew before had forgotten about him.

Was it a few days? A few weeks? 

Did they sigh with relief once he was out of the picture, no longer anyone’s problem?

Did their realities, fixed back to normal, felt more complete and peaceful without him there than  _ with _ him?

Did he manage to fulfill his wish to be needed, to be relied on, by becoming an obstacle that, once defeated, served its purpose as a stepping stone to someone else’s improvement? 

The crow landed on his thigh, tilting its head with interest. 

“ _ Caw, caw _ .”

“You again, huh, trash pigeon.” Akechi tore his gaze away from the Buchiko statue and looked down at the bird. Why was he even sitting there again? He could have spent his lunch break in more meaningful ways. “You are so persistent. Do you think I will always be good to you because I was nice once?” He sneered. It felt fake. “You remind me of someone.”

“ _ Caw? _ ” The crow raised one wing a bit and began cleaning the fluffy feathers underneath. 

“Some guy who just couldn’t get a clue. You are both going against your nature, not thinking about what danger may befall you. Seeking for something in me that’s not even there.” He raised one hand reluctantly to touch the bird’s shiny black back but stopped mid-air. What was he even trying to do? 

The crow stopped cleaning its feathers and looked at his hand questioningly. 

Akechi clenched his hand into a fist and swung at it.

The crow jumped up and took flight, croaking indignantly. It sounded betrayed.

“That’s what you get,” Akechi murmured and stood up, dusting off his pants, “for getting involved.”

He hoped, once again, to never see it again.

* * *

Halfway through the June, he accidentally recalled a certain detail regarding the Thieves’ encounter with Kaneshiro. To say he felt ashamed of not remembering it earlier would be the huge understatement. Cursing his own stupidity, he packed his bag - a necessary replacement for the case he used to carry around, as it was too recognizable - and stormed out of the office, telling Tatsuya he would see him later at home.

There was absolutely no fucking  _ way  _ he would admit to it. He had to play his cards wisely, make it look like an accidental discovery.

Feet carried him to Shibuya’s Central Street. There was a karaoke bar there, where, as he recalled, the Thieves looked for clues regarding Kaneshiro’s identity before, based on the rumors repeated by students at Shujin.

The grayish blue of dusk colored the streets, but they did not give in to it, lighting up their own lights and colors in retaliation. A few obscure alleyways near the karaoke bar, where the twilight took reign regardless, were his primary targets. 

Akechi walked around, approaching people, mostly young ones, inquiring about the frauds. Have they fallen victim to them? Have someone they knew? Do they know this karaoke bar around the corner? Did something suspicious in there catch their attention?

“Hey, you there!” Someone called out from behind. 

He turned around slowly, trying to not let the triumphant smile show at his face.

“Is something the matter?” He beamed cheerfully, with a polite voice, slightly tilting his head to the side. 

“What do you think you are doing, punk? Want to damage the reputation of our place?” The man talked like he was spitting out his words in disgust. His hands were tucked into the pockets of his jeans. Another vulgar-looking man followed him like a shadow. 

With workers like this, there was nothing more to damage in the place’s reputation.

“Oh, absolutely no. I’m afraid it’s a misunderstanding.” The smile didn’t leave his face as he fully turned around.

“Listen,  _ boy— _ ” the man started, but then the one behind him gasped in realization and caught his arm.

Shit.

“I remember this guy, he’s with the police.” 

Fuck.

The three of them thought at once, probably.

The two adults exchanged meaningful looks and the one in the front took his hands out of his pockets. The pocket knife sprang open in his right.

“Listen, boy,” he picked up, “there is nothing to be afraid of. We will let you go if you promise to be a good kid, hm?” he lied.

Akechi surpassed an ugly smirk that tried to push its way onto his face. 

If he was the one to judge, he probably knew even more about  _ this _ kind of people than about the police in the long run. He checked his footing, readying himself for a brawl. 

It’s certainly been a while. But maybe a little spar would make him feel  _ better _ .

The first man threw himself forward, slashing the knife at Akechi’s chest. He dodged swiftly and caught the man’s arm then pulled, turning the force of impact against him. The guy tripped and fell to the ground, knife hitting the wall with a metallic sound. 

“You little bitch!” the other yelled, throwing a simple punch at him. 

Clearly just your average street thugs, without proper combat training. Akechi caught his wrist and twisted, changed the hold and put the lever on his arm. The man cried out in pain, falling down to his knees. Akechi smirked despite himself and pulled  _ a bit harder _ , until the voice turned into a scream.

He noticed a shadow moving in the corner of his vision and realized it was too early to indulge in victory. He might have not gotten sloppy when it comes to physical skill, but he became careless. Something told him he won’t be able to dodge this time. 

He let go of the man’s hand and threw his arm up to take the knife’s slash on it when—

The black mass of feathers, claws and frantic croaking fell down from the sky and the shiny beak pecked at the attacker’s hand, drawing blood. He yelled with pain and surprise when the knife fell from his hand and then he shook the arm with a powerful swing. The familiar looking crow was thrown onto the ground with a wild screech. 

Akechi felt his heart stop for a second. Shit. Shit, shit, shit, fuck.

He kicked the man wailing on the ground in the stomach for a good measure and ignored the other, who backed off staring with wide eyes at his bleeding fingers. 

Serves you right, trash fucker.

Akechi broke into a run and grabbed the bird now lying motionless on the ground. 

Fuck.

He didn’t stop running until the evening crowds surrounded him. 

The sea of people, busy with their own matters. Eyes glued to the screens of their phones. Minds focused on what to eat for dinner, how to skip school or work tomorrow.

He tried to calm down his ragged breathing. He needed to  _ fit in _ . To  _ not stand out _ .

He fixed the grip on the bird in his arms. Its heart was beating. Eyes blinked at him from time to time, but they looked unfocused. 

First, he needed to get away from there. 

When he got to the Station Square and sat heavily on the bench, throwing his bag under his legs, the bird seemed to have gotten better already. He placed it gently on his thigh and it wobbled slightly on the weak legs but kept its balance, the claws scratching Akechi’s legs through the fabric.

He couldn’t quite put into words what he was feeling now. He was sure he got rid of the bird for good but yet it crawled back to his side, followed him and even  _ fought _ for him with the damn humans. 

“What the fuck did you think you were doing just now, dumbass?” he asked the bird with a heavy sigh. 

“ _ Caw _ ,” it croaked weakly in response and he clicked his tongue and caught its beak between his fingers.

“Shut up, you don’t have anything wise to say anyways, don’t waste your breath.”

The crow blinked at him and tried to open the beak, but Akechi gripped it more firmly.

“Do you understand now?” he spat out angrily. “That’s what I was talking about. Hang around me and you are going to fucking suffer. Either someone else will hurt you, or I will.” He let go and slumped his arms in defeat. “But you won’t listen anyways, will you? The two of you… the birds of a feather flock together, huh.” 

The crow pecked at his finger resting on his other leg like if it wanted something. He opened his palm and raised it up a bit. 

“What? I don’t have anything in th—” 

The bird pushed its head against his open palm. Akechi went silent for a moment. Then moved his fingers, petting the crow’s head in gentle strokes. 

Something stug his eyes but he blinked it away quickly. 

“Insufferable, huh. Whatever suits you.”

* * *

“You are going today, right, Goro-kun?” Jun’s voice greeted him just when he stepped out of the bathroom in the morning. Akechi’s hair was still slightly wet after the shower when he ran his fingers through it.

It was the last day of June. In a few weeks, the summer holidays will start. It probably meant that guy will come back to Tokyo. Akechi… had to be ready.

“I’m going, Jun-san. Thank you for your care,” he answered truthfully, feeling the traitorous  _ honest _ smile trying to crawl its way out onto his face.

Jun chuckled lightly and reached out to him, brushing Goro’s bangs to the side. He was shorter than Goro, but it didn’t change the fact that he felt like he got reduced to a toddler in that single second. He couldn’t help biting his lower lip in embarrassment. It didn’t feel… bad. Not necessarily.

Honestly, these people.

“There is no need to be so formal. We will be waiting for you to come back after you feel like you’ve figured things out,” Jun said with a smile. “Call sometimes, will you? Tatsun will keep an eye on… that matter you asked about. We will let you know if something happens.”

Akechi looked down at his feet. “Thank you, Jun-san. It seems my debt to you and Tatsuya-san is only growing bigger by day.”

“There is no debt between us, Goro-kun.”

Honestly. 

These people.

* * *

The sun was high up in the sky when he made it to Shibuya. There was still some time left before his train’s scheduled departure, so he wandered off to see if the crow was hanging somewhere nearby. 

It seemed that no permanent damage was done to it when the thug smacked it to the ground, only a small concussion. Not that Akechi was going to let the guy off with it anyways. 

The bar closed down a week earlier, when the police _coincidentally_ (what a great timing, indeed) received an _anonymous_ report of a shady business taking place in it.

Akchi heard the flopping of the wings closing by and the next moment a familiar weight landed on his arm.

“You again, huh? Trash pigeon.” He reached out to scratch the crow under the beak and noticed it carried something in it.

The bird nudged his hand so he opened it and let the object fall down on it. The round, metal cap of Sapporo beer’s bottle landed on his palm, the golden star on it shining in the sunlight like a sheriff’s badge. 

Akechi snorted and laughed, feeling the bird pecking at his ear when it lost balance on his shaking shoulders.

“Sapporo, huh?” He took the cap between his fingers and looked at it with a smirk. 

“Maybe one day.”

**Author's Note:**

> You can find me on:
> 
> Twitter (https://twitter.com/Mara_dine)  
> Tumblr (https://www.tumblr.com/blog/mara-dine)


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